The Jedi Council’s 9 Dumbest Decisions

For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times... before the Empire! And before the Jedi Council completely screwed things up for everyone else.

It’s easy to blame Emperor Palpatine and his dark forces for the end of the Republic, but let’s face it: It was really the Jedi that screwed the Bantha on this one. Here are nine totally dumb decisions made by the Jedi Council that sealed the fate of the galaxy.

9. Not Saving Anakin’s Mom

Poor Shmi Skywalker. A slave whose only bright spot in life was her little Ani, Shmi saw her son torn from her overnight when the hippie Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn blasted into town and declared the boy a Force prodigy. Which, yeah, we get it -- the kid needed to be trained. And Qui-Gon wasn’t really in a position to free both Anakin and Shmi during his lost weekend on Tatooine. We guess. But… couldn’t the Jedi Council have sent for Shmi after the fact? Why would they let their young, most powerful Jedi-in-training suffer with the knowledge that his mom remained a slave in the Outer Rim? Of course, Anakin would eventually learn that things got better for Shmi -- before they got much, much worse. And that didn’t help Anakin’s fragile emotional state. At all.

8. Training Anakin (Kind of)

The Council’s initial impulse was to not train Anakin, though ultimately they went back on that decision. But in retrospect, they probably were right to not want to train him. Still, that said, since they knew how important Anakin was -- what with the high midi-chlorian count and Qui-Gon’s chatter about bringing balance to the Force, and blah, blah, blah -- why didn’t the Council do a better job of getting the kid trained? When Qui-Gon died, they put Obi-Wan on the job... Who had just completed his own time as an apprentice. But why not let Yoda take over, or Mace Windu, or one of the other Jedi Masters on the Council? Anakin needed a real teacher -- and not a lightsaber buddy -- to grow into a well-balanced, mature Jedi. The Council needed top men on this job!

7. Not Noticing That Something Smells Sithy

So there’s a Dark Lord of the Sith by the name of freaking Darth Sidious living right under your collective Jedi noses, and nobody notices? Admittedly, this is less a bad decision by the Council as much as it’s just being plain bad at your job. But still -- Palpatine is driving your millennia-old Republic into the ground, guys, and you’re all sitting around in what looks like a Marriott conference room…

6. A Clone What?

An entire Clone Army was created during the Jedi Council’s watch. An army that was programmed to eventually murder every last Jedi! And nobody knew a thing about it?! Sith Lords are our specialty indeed.

Yeah, turns out they make clones here.

5. Accusing Ahsoka of a Crime She Didn't Commit

Anakin's padawan Ahsoka was expelled from the Jedi Order by the Council when she was wrongly tried for a crime she didn’t commit. And while her name was eventually cleared, Ahsoka chose not to rejoin the Jedi after the incident. It was just these sort of actions -- in this case the poor treatment of his friend and fellow Jedi -- that contributed to Anakin’s suspicions about the Council… suspicions that would eventually have dire consequences for all parties.

4. Fools Rush In

When Mace Windu finally realizes the truth about Palpatine’s double life as Sidious, he’s understandably pissed and ready to fight. But wouldn’t it have made sense to wait for back-up? Sure, the Emperor was all old-bureaucratic-guy on the outside, but he did mentor some fierce fighters in his time. (Darth Maul, anyone?) It would make sense that he’d be pretty good with a lightsaber too. Which, as it turns out, he was.

3. Hiding Luke Skywalker Where?!

It’s a nice idea -- letting Luke be raised by what little family he has in the galaxy. But it’s also a colossally stupid one. Obi-Wan and Yoda -- the sole survivors of the Council at this point -- decide to take baby Luke to the planet where his now-evil dad is from, to the very home where his now-evil dad hung out in, in the desert where his now-evil dad went medieval on some sand people that one time. Sure, Darth Vader never did find Luke on Tatooine. But Yoda and Obi-Wan didn’t know that wouldn’t happen. They got super-lucky. Unlike the galaxy they had sworn to protect.

"Should we change our names, honey?" "Nahhhh."

2. Not Training Leia

“There is another…” But we’re gonna keep her on the sidelines while the fate of the galaxy hangs in the balance. So why wasn’t Leia trained by Yoda the way Luke was? Really, it made even more sense for her to become a Jedi than it did for Luke, what with all those years of leadership experience and insider knowledge regarding the Rebel Alliance. In fact, she’s the polar opposite of Luke, who even had to have explained to him what a lightsaber is!

1. Lying to Luke

So much of mastering the Force is about a Jedi Knight’s emotional state. And yet, Obi-Wan and Yoda send Luke off into battle against Vader completely ignorant about who he’s going to face. Sure, it’s a tough thing to have to tell a guy his dad is Space Hitler. But wouldn’t it be better to learn it in advance from those you trust rather than in the heat of a lightsaber duel while standing on the precipice of a bottomless pit? Yoda and Obi-Wan apparently thought not.

What are you favorite dumb Jedi decisions? Let’s discuss in the comments!